Task 1
You are going to read an article in which people talk about holidays.
For each question (1-12), choose one person from A-F.
There is an example at the beginning (0-A).
Task 2
Read the text below.
For each question (13-18), choose the correct answer (A, B, C or D).
Mark your answer on the answer sheet.
Trees and Green Spaces in Cities
“Trees provide nesting sites, food, and cover for countless species living around us. Of course,” Tom Baker says, “as students of architecture we used to refer to trees as graceful supplements making a house feel like a home and enriching the view from the window, which they still very much do.” They also help clear the atmosphere by decreasing pollution. Trees cool the air, land and water with leafy shade and moisture. Those planted near our homes and in our community reduce the need for air-conditioning and heating produced by burning fossil fuels. And the list goes on and on.
Fast-forward a decade, and Tom Baker is head of ‘The Green Spaces Initiative’ in Brookson. He says green spaces can contribute to a more liveable, sustainable, and economically strong city that improves the quality of life of its inhabitants. Urban planning thus requires careful consideration of the environmental impact of city life, including the attempt to reduce CO2 emissions, and of various other factors, such as local demographics, social or cultural values, and economic development. Apart from the traditionally accepted view that they provide spaces for recreation and relaxation, a wide range of experts have confirmed that areas of greenery enhance biodiversity. After a local opinion poll, another interpretation has emerged, defining them as places where people can interact.
It is estimated that, ideally, everyone should live within 500 metres of a green space. Despite that, it is not uncommon for city planners to overlook the inclusion of green spaces, especially in highly urbanised areas where there is little room for property development. City planners may prioritise economic development and infrastructure over green spaces although there is now a common understanding of their benefits. Whether or not humans have interfered with the development of a green area determines whether it is considered to be natural. This will lead either to revitalising it or protecting it for its significance to the environment.
In general, however, incorporating green spaces in cities is crucial and it requires constant campaigning to raise awareness among citizens of its numerous benefits. Tom adds: “An example is that spending time in a park can be a great family- and community-building activity, such as sharing a birthday or playing games, or that trees can reduce harmful substances, lowering the incidence of respiratory problems. While we’re currently promoting the latest data referring to the reduction of stress levels and anxiety, next in line is that parks can create a sense of place, adding character to urban areas.”
In short, there is no doubt that green spaces are beneficial for the environment and the community. Nevertheless, one major challenge remains: many cities have already grown so packed that large swathes of parks and forest trails are nearly impossible to establish as it would be too expensive to bring down existing blocks of housing. A solution may be creating mini forests in the smaller spaces, growing up to 30 times as fast as conventional ones. This involves planting a limited number of native species in a small space to produce a thick forest that could prove efficient in remediating soil and supplying animal habitats.
“Many cities have underutilised spaces, such as carparks, abandoned buildings and vacant lots. If they wanted, local authorities could convert them into parks, community gardens, green roofs, and other types of urban green infrastructure. Maintaining biodiversity for any green area is key for its own and human survival in general,” states Tom. “Governments could also encourage local participation through petitions or complaints as well as involvement in the creation and maintenance of green spaces, as they are increasingly considered to minimise the influence of pollutants. This could be done through volunteer programmes, community garden initiatives, and other community-based programmes.”
Task 3
Read the text on the next page.
For each question (19-24), choose the sentence (A-H) that best fits the gap.
There are two sentences that you do not need.
There is an example at the beginning (0-I).
Downshifting
The paradigm of the career ladder has long been promoted by employment services and recruitment agencies. (0) _. Therefore, current developments in Western Europe, where city slickers are becoming brewers and executives are picking up power tools, are certainly something that is upsetting the applecart.
Statistics show that, at the start of 2022, one fifth of French people were in the process of changing jobs and over a quarter were thinking about it. In general, labour markets have become less regulated and more insecure for workers. (19) _. English has a word for it - ‘downshifting’ - signifying a career change to an activity perhaps less well paid, but offering better job satisfaction.
Commentators are perplexed by what appears to run counter to perceived wisdom on social mobility and aspiration. Millennials and younger generations in society must increasingly make do with jobs less prestigious than their parents’ or for which they are overqualified. (20) _. What are we to make, therefore, of the manager who actively wants to become a cheese maker?
A recent study in France has lifted the lid on what is going on, providing an insight into new motivations and aspirations. The first takeaway is that career switchers’ attitude to employment is ‘experiential’: they prize fulfilment over material reward. (21) _. Some access benefits during retraining; others have income from family or savings to fall back on. Their existing qualifications and CV offer them an escape route should things not work out. In some ways, it is the best of both worlds.
The new career may not offer the kudos, social opportunities or financial reward they might otherwise expect, but the experiential perspective results in a change in expectation. (22) _. As a result, they rarely feel a loss of status; indeed, they are more likely to report an increased sense of ‘meaning’ in their new job.
This brings us to the second major conclusion of the study, which has more to do with the nature of the employment being abandoned. (23) _. This is manifested in rejection of an unhealthy sedentary existence, as well as the narrow focus of stratified work in a large faceless company. They complained of an increasing feeling of disconnection from a higher sense of vocation in what they were doing. Some went further, describing modern career structures and lifestyles as devoid of purpose and even meaningless.
In stark contrast, manual activity offers the gratification of physical involvement. There are perceived benefits to mind and body. (24) _. This is completely in opposition to the soul-destroying tedium of a corporate culture of meetings, reports and hierarchies, where the division of labour means that workers can never physically hold the fruits of their labour. Of course, disturbing developments worldwide have contributed to this reordering of priorities but, ultimately, a concern with autonomy is what is driving these changes. The retrained craftsperson is more likely to be involved with all aspects of production and to see palpable results from their efforts. This, it seems, trumps old notions of ‘a secure job.’
Task 4
Read the text below.
For each question (25-32), choose the answer (A, B, C or D) that best completes the sentence.
There is an example at the beginning (0-A).
Losing an Accent
Everybody has an accent. Listening to accents we can immediately make (0) _ about our interlocutors. The way someone talks (25) _ to their identity. So why is it that some people lose their regional or national accent, (26) _ for others it remains firmly in place? You may consider your accent to be immutable, but research shows that at any point in our lives the need to conform may alter - on a conscious or subconscious level - our vocal production, (27) _ we like it or not.
In the case of those whose accents do shift, the way (28) _ which they speak may be of less importance to their sense of identity, or it may be that it is their need to belong to a social or professional group that causes the change. As young children, we are exposed to a relatively small social group we learn to imitate. As we encounter wider societal groupings this same instinct to assimilate (29) _ us to modify our speech patterns accordingly. The process can repeat itself multiple times in a person’s life as variations in work or location occur.
Of course, there are others (30) _ voices remain impervious to change. It is possible that this reflects a sense of security in cultural identity, or perhaps an urge to identify with (or even advertise) their original background rather than any new environment where they find themselves. In addition, (31) _ a person possess the accent of what is deemed to be a prestigious group in society, they will consequently feel (32) _ pressure to abandon that advantage. This confirms speech’s crucial role in our sense of identity. Accents are all around us!
Task 5
Read the text on the next page.
For each question (33-40), choose the answer (A-M) that best completes the sentence.
There are five options that you do not need.
There is an example at the beginning (0-N).
The Future with ChatGPT
ChatGPT defines (0) _ as a state-of-the-art AI language model developed by OpenAI. It is a Generative Pre-trained Transformer (GPT) model that (33) _ deep learning techniques to generate human-like text based on the input provided. It consists of a massive corpus of diverse internet content, including webpages, books, essays, and other publicly available text sources. However, ChatGPT answers users’ requests based on these sources, but without credits or reference (34) _ where the information comes from, which poses a huge copyright problem, particularly because of ChatGPT’s widespread usage (35) _ students, especially in completing academic assignments.
The AI model (36) _ various language tasks such as answering questions, generating creative writing, and translating text. Although mimicking human conversation is, in fact, (37) _ main feature, ChatGPT has other capabilities as well. This includes storing previous conversations to be recalled when and where necessary, or writing and debugging computer programs, answering test questions (sometimes at a level higher than the average human test-taker), composing song lyrics, simulating an entire chat room, and even playing games like tic-tac-toe. As impressive as this may sound, ChatGPT’s features are creating legal and ethical problems that will have to be discussed and solved in the future.
Another ethical concern the model (38) _ is plagiarism. Educational institutions are hugely concerned (39) _ the originality of the work that students submit. Unfortunately, ChatGPT has made this problem even more serious by making it easier for students to plagiarise almost undetected. While (40) _ have been AIs developed with the sole purpose of detecting AI-written content, the tools are not 100% accurate and they may pronounce a human-written text as AI-generated and vice versa.
It can be concluded that ChatGPT has been given many positive reviews but has also received a lot of criticism since appearing in 2022.